Study on the Characteristics of Tea Moral Culture Appeared in Hanjae Yi Mok's Dabu

Abstract

Dabu (Rhapsody to Tea) is a representative of Korea's oldest tea, written by Hanjae Yi Mok (1471-1498), and has been evaluated as the first and oldest existing tea ceremony scripture in the history of Korean tea culture. Dabu explains the moral process of tea culture and can be referred as ‘the theory of training in tea ceremony’ or ‘a guideline for moral culture in tea ceremony’. It is systematically presents the mechanism of cultivation of tea and the stages of cultivation. And also which explains the mystery of the tea ceremony that leads to ‘Osimjicha (tea of my mind)’. The medium of tea and the stage of cultivation processes are likened to the stage of mental cultivation, which can be said to be the attitude of a moral scholar who wants to reach peace with the people through the study of mind called ‘Sugi (self cultivating)’. The author Hanjae believes that the idea of ‘Dasimilyeo (tea and the mind are the same)’ is the theoretical foundation of cultivation that fosters the initiative of the mind, which can be a necessary philosophical and spiritual value in modern society.